Disclaimer: I only own the characters not normally seen on the show.
Previously: He wouldn't be the other guy, no matter how much he loved her.
A/N: Go ahead, yell, scream, punish me. I deserve it. The only thing I can say is I lost inspiration for actually physically writing this story. I had the conversations in my head, I know the way this is going to end, but I couldn't get myself to write it down, everything sounded like crap - so I took a Bones break and tried my hand at some Tin Man oneshots which are going well, but I can't leave this story unfinished again - so with some effort, I sat down and wrote this. I know there's a lot of stuff that happens in such a short chapter but - hey, at least it's not boring...I have to say, there is only going to be one more to this story...so hold on, because we've got a lot going on!
(--)
She didn't know what woke her up, but the lights were off and the room was eerily dark. She didn't open her eyes at first, secretly hoping that it had all been a bad dream and she'd find Booth sleeping peacefully beside her.
But he wasn't sleeping beside her. He was sleeping in one of the over-stuffed chairs near the window. Brennan pushed herself up on her elbow. She thought for a moment that he was still awake, arms crossed over his chest, but when he didn't respond to her gently saying his name, she concluded that he'd fallen asleep.
He's going to be in pain tomorrow, she thought and momentarily wondered if she should wake him and order him to move to the bed with her, but after the events of that evening she was pretty sure that was the last thing he would want to do.
Instead, she slipped from underneath the covers and padded over to him, the thin blanket from the bed in her hands. Careful not to wake him, she pulled the blanket over him, letting her fingertips trail up his arms and across his cheekbones.
She retracted her hand abruptly, however, when he shifted in his sleep, startling her. She watched him for a moment more before tearing her eyes away and walking back to bed. She slid under the covers and turned on her side, away from him.
Closing her eyes, she willed sleep to come.
Booth's eyes opened slowly. Brennan was already back in bed, curled into the covers. He glanced down at the blanket she had placed over him, then back at the woman in question.
He prayed for the strength to let go of her.
(--)
"Cam ran the tox-screen," Angela stated later that morning.
"And?" Booth inquired, trying to release the tension in the back of his neck.
"There was no cocaine in her system. Which means, either she hadn't taken a hit in a while or…"
"Or she's not an addict," Booth finished for her.
"Bingo, baby," came Angela's reply.
"Great," he scrubbed his hands over his tired eyes. Vacation was not supposed to be like this. It was supposed to be all fun and sand and happy times. Not murders and drugs and loosing his best friend.
"On the other hand, we found out what probably paralyzed her," Hodgins' voice chimed in.
"In English please," Booth reminded him.
"It's a Curare-derivative," Hodgins answered.
"Yeah, I don't know what that means," Booth's frustrated growl made Angela cringe at her boyfriend sitting in the office beside her.
A hollow voice filled the small security office where Booth sat, "Curare is a poison found in South America; it's commonly used by hunters who tip their arrows in the substance. It affects neuromuscular transmission causing muscle relaxation and eventual paralysis."
Brennan's eyes were on everything but Booth. And the agent couldn't help but notice this. She looked like she hadn't slept all that well either. He desperately begged for some sick enjoyment at thought that he wasn't the only one with a sore neck but - no matter how angry and hurt he was - he couldn't be happy at her expense.
"Hey, Sweetie," Angela had turned to concerned-mode, "You don't sound too hot."
"I'm fine Angela, I was just up early working," Temperance replied coolly.
"Okay," Angela took the hint, "Well, Cam found out that the dosage used on Regina Daly had other things in it; probably watered down version."
"That would explain why she wasn't fighting when her attacker pushed her into the furnace."
"Yeah, we wish we could give you more, but the samples are so little," Angela sounded honestly upset by the minimal help she and the others could give Brennan, but at that point, Temperance didn't care. All she wanted was to find the killer, get the hell off this damned boat, go home, curl up under a blanket and waste away. She deserved that.
"It's fine, Ange, I know you're trying," Brennan assured her.
She looked at her watch and a sense of panic started to tremble in her stomach. They only had 24 hours left to catch their killer before he disappeared into the warm Miami sun and was off scot-free! She couldn't and wouldn't let that happen.
Forcing herself to focus, she looked at Booth. He seemed surprised to be meeting her gaze - and maybe that was surprising, she didn't care - they had a killer to catch. She repeated that over and over in her head as Booth dark eyes bore into hers.
"We need to talk to Izzy again."
(--)
The little was playing with Parker when Booth and Brennan found her. They were running around Discovery Land with the other children, both wearing hand-made masks on their faces. Brennan would have laughed had she not been as focused.
She had to lock up her heart in that box she'd told Zach about. This was not going to be easy for Izzy and Temperance imagined it wouldn't be for her either. She was - after all - going to ask the traumatized kid about her mother's murder.
"Hey, Tempe!" Izzy rushed the doctor and latched her arms around Brennan's neck.
"Hi, Izzy," Brennan pulled back, "are you having fun?"
"Uh-huh, Parker and I were playing monsters," Izzy explained. Temperance stopped herself from telling Izzy that monsters were not real and it was irrational to think they were, not only because Izzy was a child, but also - Brennan realized - there were such things as monsters, and one of them had killed Izzy's mother.
"That sounds fun," Brennan smiled but the expression didn't reach her eyes and Izzy touched her fingertips to Temperance's face.
"You don't look happy," Izzy observed.
"I have to ask you some questions…about what happened to your mom," Brennan stated slowly.
Izzy's face became the picture of horror. "You said I wouldn't have to talk about it after the last time!"
"I know, I know," Brennan tried her hardest to soothe the child trying to pull away from her, "But Booth and I need your help Izzy. We aren't going to be able to find the man who hurt your mom, if you don't help us."
Izzy stopped squirming, but didn't look at Temperance. For a moment, Booth was afraid Izzy was going to close up and they wouldn't get anything out of her - and they desperately needed something - he'd seen even traumatized people act in a similar manner. Hell, even Brennan had shut him and the rest of the world out whenever she'd been pushed too far.
"I don't know who he was."
It was so quiet that Booth thought for a moment that the little girl's voice had been in his imagination; that he'd been hoping so hard he was hearing things. But Brennan's grateful expression and partial smile proved that he'd been correct.
"But he had a loud voice and he was…angry," Izzy whispered.
"Do you know why he was angry?" Tempe asked.
Izzy nodded, "Me and mommy were leaving. He didn't like that."
"Why not?"
"He said mommy knew too much…that she couldn't leave…." She began to sob loudly and threw her arms around Brennan's neck once more - burying her face in Temperance's shoulder and shaking violently as the doctor held onto the eight-year-old.
"Shh," Brennan whispered, her eyes meeting Booth's, "it's okay. It's okay, everything's going to be okay. We're going to find him."
Booth hoped he could keep her promise.
(--)
"She was trying to leave, Booth," Brennan repeated as they walked along the corridor of ship, heading toward their shared suite to go over the files again, adding this new information to their already minimal amount.
"Yeah, I heard Bones," he huffed. He didn't need her to tell him what they already knew. He knew all that. He needed new info; he needed a suspect and so far they had a senile sex-partner and the woman's boyfriend. He had gotten officially nowhere in the last three days - well, nowhere except effectively ruining his friendship with his partner.
"So it was about the drugs. You were right," Brennan pointed her finger at him, prodding him in the shoulder as they walked.
"Yeah, that's great Bones, except we still don't know who killed Regina and now we've probably just traumatized her kid even more," Booth snapped. Temperance froze. She should have expected his chilly demeanor but it still surprised her. She had thought - hoped, really - that they would at least be civil while working - but this was clearly not the case.
She swallowed the painful lump that had lodged in her throat and moved to catch up with Booth as he neared their stateroom. Suddenly the agent stopped and swung his arm out to catch her across the middle, forcing her to an abrupt - and somewhat painful - stop. She frowned at her partner but he wasn't looking at her, his dark eyes were focused on the doorway to their stateroom.
The doorway to their stateroom that was open.
Booth drew his gun from the holster under his brown leather jacket and moved slowly and quietly into the room, followed a little too-closely by an ever-curious Brennan. Their clothing was tossed about the place as if someone had been searching for something.
Before Booth could even begin to make the room was safe, Brennan was already darting forward, her hands rummaging through the clothing on the bed. Booth sighed, frustrated as he quickly checked the bathroom and Parker's room before stepping to Brennan's side.
"All my notes from the case are gone, Booth," she indicated the empty file folder.
"They cleaned us out," he reiterated.
"Well, at least we know they're still on board," she suggested.
"Yeah, great," Booth gave her a worried look.
After a breath of silence, Temperance froze. Oh my god…heart stopped and she looked over at Booth once more. The panic in his eyes told her he was thinking the same thing. Without a word, they both took off at break-neck speeds out the door.
(--)
Booth heard his heart pounding in his ears and he was pretty sure it wasn't from the exhilarating run as he and Temperance ran full out back toward Discovery Land. He was sure he was going have a heart attack in a moment if he didn't get back and find Parker.
His mind raced to that last time his son had been in danger of a psycho serial killer. Booth had nearly scared the poor kid to death but the agent had never been happier to see his son cry. He was only hoping for the same today.
Temperance thought she might choke on the tears that had inexplicably started making long pathways from her eyes to her chin. She tried to wipe them away but it proved harder than expected as she was pushing through crowds of people.
Oh, god, if you do, by some chance, exist, she thought painfully, please let them be okay…please…
Her silent begging to a potentially non-existent higher power was forgotten, however, as she Booth rounded the corner and nearly plowed through the doors of Discovery Land.
"Parker!" he yelled it as they burst through the door, scaring several children into tears. When the little blonde boy didn't come rushing at him, Booth's heart rate increased tenfold. He called again.
Brennan was already running through the groups of children, searching for Parker or Izzy but she found nothing. A petit blonde woman attempted to stop her after Temperance had grabbed a little blonde boy and nearly gave the kid a hernia.
"Ma'am, you need to calm down," the woman instructed, her arms bent at the elbow in a half-surrender-half-soothing position. God, Brennan hated psychology.
"I'm trying to find two kids," Brennan heaved, barely able to breathe.
"What are their names?" the woman asked.
"Parker Booth and Izzy Daly!" she yelled loudly, but no response came and she looked back at the employee, "they might be missing," she added, glancing over at her partner who was in a heated debate with two hefty-looking staffers, flashing his badge was apparently getting him nowhere.
"I'll check the records, see if anyone came to take them, ma'am, but you need to stop yelling."
"Right - Parker! - please hurry - Izzy!" Brennan scanned the room over the woman's head.
"Ma'am I don't want to have to call security," the woman was using a falsely authoritative voice. Brennan had heard the voice before from the men in her department - men who had tried to tell her what to do - tried and failed.
"You can call whomever you want, but if you don't go over to that computer now and find those kids you'll be hearing from my friend over there with the gun," Brennan replied.
"Are you threatening me?" the woman was taken aback.
Temperance rolled her eyes and pushed past the employee. She stepped behind the counter and quickly looked over the computer.
"Excuse me! Ma'am you can't be back there! Ma'am!"
Brennan, who had found the appropriate keys on the screen, looked up at the blonde woman and curtly replied, "Shut up," before turning back to the computer and pulling up the check-out lists. Her heart sank as she read over the information.
Booth, Parker picked up at 12:43p.m.
Daly, Isabelle picked up at 12:43p.m.
(--)
Dun, dun, dun! Oo, a cliffhanger! Sorry about it but I had to make sure you guys were still gonna show up for the last chapter. Again with the missing kids and BB tension - and I thought we'd gotten past that! R&R, they are my life!